The Lost MedJai
by Deana
Summary: The O'Connell's are shocked to find Ardeth Bay in a London hospital, with no memory. It's up to them to help him regain it.
1. Shocking Discovery

The Lost Med-Jai

A Mummy Story

By Deana Lisi

Disclaimer: I do not own Ardeth Bay, (darn it) or anyone else from the Mummy. Safti is mine, as are any other original characters. Thanks to Karri, for helping out with the title and a couple ideas, also Shelley, Xanthia Morgan and Lady FoxFire for some ideas too! 

"Pardon me, ma'am?"

Evelyn O'Connell looked up from the table she'd just set a stack of books on. "Yes?" she asked the policeman standing before her, as she removed her reading glasses.

Holding his hat in his hands, the policeman took a few steps closer. "Are you Mrs. O'Connell?"

"Yes...is something wrong?" she asked, nervously, hoping nothing had happened to her family.

"I've just come from London Hospital, there is a strange man there who's lost his memory and we have no idea who he is, or where he came from."

Evy blinked. "How would _I_ be able to help?" she asked, relieved that it didn't appear to be her husband, son, or brother.

"Well, I read in the papers how you've done archeological work, and know all about ancient something's-or other…"

"Egyptian."

The man nodded. "Yes. Well this fellow seems to be Arab and has these strange tattoos on his face—"

Evy gasped, and dropped her books.

"I say—"

Evy cut him off, grabbing his arm when he started to pick them up.

"What does he look like?" she demanded. 

"Uh, well…long dark hair…beard…"

"Tall? Wearing black robes?"

The policeman nodded. "Why, yes."

"Take me to him!"

********************

"What happened?!" Evy asked the doctor, after being shown in to see the patient, and seeing that it was indeed who she thought it to be.

Ardeth Bay.

"Head injury," the middle-aged doctor said, as if it wasn't obvious.

Evy walked closer to the bed in which her good friend lay, asleep. He was pale; there were scattered cuts on his face and a bandage around his head. "No, I mean how did he get hurt?"

"Bus accident."

"What?"

"There was a major bus accident early yesterday morning. He was on it."

"Oh my." Evy sighed, shaking her head. After all that Ardeth Bay had experienced with undead mummies and whatnot, he gets injured in a stupid bus accident? "How bad is his injury?"

The doctor sighed. "I was told that after being a human cushion, he supposedly insisted at the scene that he was fine, but then passed out—"

"Human cushion?" Evy asked, bewildered.

"He was on the left side of the bus. The bus swerved and tipped onto that side, and all the people on the right naturally flew to the left. I was told several of them landed on him; the poor chap has bruises all over. He has been unconscious ever since, until about an hour ago. He could not tell us who he is, or where he came from. He obviously has a concussion. As for the memory loss…I don't know if it is temporary or permanent."

Evy's jaw dropped."It might be _permanent_?!"

The doctor shrugged. "It's possible that he could wake up again and have regained his memory, but there's a chance that he won't. We hoped to find someone who knew him, if that was indeed the case."

Evy shook her head, placing a hand on Ardeth's arm.

"What is his name?" the doctor asked.

"Ardeth Bay."

"Er...how do you spell that?" 

She told him, and he wrote it down. "Where's he from?"

"Egypt."

"How old is he?"

_A year younger than Rick. _"32."

The doctor was about to ask something else, when Evy felt Ardeth's arm tense under her hand. "Ardeth?" she said. "Are you awake?"

She got no answer, and wondered if Ardeth didn't realize that she was talking to him. Reaching forward, she brushed a lock of hair off his bandaged forehead, and whispered his name again.

This time, he opened his eyes, halfway.

Evy smiled, relived to see him awake. She had to force the smile to stay when she saw no recognition on his face. 

"Ardeth?" she said. "Do you know who I am?"

Ardeth blinked at her for a few seconds, before shaking his head, slowly. 

Evy saw him wince, and she sighed. She was surprised when Ardeth spoke.

"Do you…know _me_?" he said, wincing when she placed a hand on his shoulder.

Evy quickly pulled her hand away, realizing that he'd probably landed on the shoulder when the bus had tipped. Evy sighed; his voice was soft and weak, and it nearly broke her heart to see Ardeth so vulnerable. 

"Yes," she said. "Your name is Ardeth Bay. You are a very good friend of mine."

The information seemed to please him, and he smiled slightly, before closing his eyes again. When he didn't reopen them, they realized he'd fallen back to sleep.

 Evy sighed again; shaken by the situation, and its implications. "How long are you keeping him here?"

The doctor shrugged. "It depends on where he's going when he's let out."

"With me, naturally."

"Good. I'd hate to see him have to fend for himself in such a state. As for when; we'll have to see how well he does. Perhaps the day after tomorrow."

Evy nodded. "All right. I need to tell my husband about this, can I come back later?"

The doctor nodded. "It would be good for him to get used to you before you take him to your home, so that he won't feel as if he's with strangers."

Evy nodded, sighing at the word 'strangers'. "Thank you." With another look at Ardeth, Evy left. 


	2. Ardeth Who?

Thank you everyone SO much for the wonderful reviews! 

"Rick!"

"Welcome home, honey," Rick said, walking to meet her halfway and puckering his lips for a kiss. 

Instead Evy grabbed his arm and pulled him towards the couch.

Rick opened his eyes with a disappointed frown when he didn't get the expected smooch, and followed her, surprised when she pulled him down on the couch pretty forcefully. "What's wrong, Evy?" he asked.

Evy took a deep breath, trying to figure out how to tell him. "While I was at the museum today, a policeman came and told me there was a man at the hospital who has no memory, and they needed my help."

Rick frowned, trying to figure out where the story was going.

"He asked me if I could identify tattoos on the man's face…"

Rick jumped to his feet. "Ardeth?"

Evy nodded, somberly.

"At the hospital? With no memory?"

Evy nodded again.

Rick gaped at her for a minute, seeming unable to speak. "What are we standing around for? Let's go!"

********************

Rick and Evy sat at Ardeth's bedside quietly, waiting for him to awaken. The doctor and a couple of nurses came and went every once in a while, and after a few hours both Evy and Rick were falling asleep, from being motionless for so long. 

As they were drifting in that half-asleep, half-awake mode, they heard a sound, and both of them opened their eyes to see that Ardeth was awake, sleepily looking around.

"Ardeth!" Rick said, sounding relieved. 

Ardeth looked at him, and Evy's heart sank to see no recognition for Rick either in Ardeth's eyes.

"You know me also?" Ardeth asked. 

Rick felt like he'd been punched in the stomach. His best friend had no idea who he was! "Yeah, Ardeth, you're—we—we're friends."

Ardeth seemed a little more coherent this time, and he looked around the room. "Where am I?"

"At a hospital in London," Evy told him.

"London? Where is that?"

Evy looked at Rick, shocked that the memory loss was so extensive. "A country called England."

"And…that is where I live?" Ardeth asked, sounding confused.

Rick shook his head, in as much shock as Evy. "No, you live in Egypt."

Ardeth frowned again. He tried to sit up, and was rewarded with his head spinning and enough pain to almost knock him out.

Evy and Rick both jumped out of their chairs and went to grab his arms, but Ardeth gasped and held his head, shutting his eyes tight. 

"Ardeth…" Evy said, distressed to see him in such pain.

"Go get the doctor, Evy," Rick said urgently, a hand on Ardeth's arm.

Evy ran out of the room and almost collided with the doctor, who'd been about to come into the room. 

When the doctor saw Ardeth, he took some pills out of a bottle. "We have to get him to take these." 

They waited a minute for Ardeth's pain to subside somewhat, before they tried to move him. Evy had to tell Ardeth twice what they were going to do before he showed some form of acknowledgment. 

Rick gently held him up so he could take the pills and drink the water, then carefully laid him back down. 

Ardeth closed his eyes with a sigh, and didn't reopen them.

"Asleep," the doctor said. "Why don't you go home, he'll probably sleep the rest of the night, until we wake him."

"Is he at risk to slip into a coma?" Evy asked, nervously. 

The doctor shrugged. "If you asked me that this morning I would've said yes, but he's already woken up three times on his own, so I would say no, at this point."

Evy and Rick both sighed with relief. 

"Okay, doc, we'll be back tomorrow," Rick said.

********************

Contrary to what they thought, Ardeth was not asleep. He was trying to listen, to see what—if any—clues he could gather, regarding these people, _and_ himself. _Who am I? _he thought. _And why can I not remember? _The woman had said that his name was Ardeth Bay. The name did not sound familiar at all; neither did the people look familiar. He sighed, wishing the terrible headache would go away so he could think. He didn't have long to wait, for he fell asleep instead.

********************

"Where have you two been?"

Rick and Evy walked into the house to see Jonathan standing in front of the fire. 

"Ardeth is here," Rick said, walking to the couch.

"Really!" said Jonathan. He looked behind them, not seeing anyone else. "Er…where?"

"In the hospital."

"What?! Why?"

They told him, and Jonathan was as upset as they were. 

"Lost his memory! I can't believe it! How on earth will he get it back?"

They all sighed. 

"That is something we have to figure out," said Evy. "And that isn't all. Ardeth obviously came to England for a reason."

She watched the men's faces, until they realized what she meant, and looks of shock crossed them.

"Oh _no_…" Jonathan wailed.

"Ardeth must've come here for our help," said Rick.

Evy nodded. "Exactly. And now that he has no memory, he can't tell us what he needed our help _for_, and whatever has happened will not be stopped." She took a shuddering breath, the implications overwhelming.

"It may be too late now to save the world."


	3. Reminiscing

Thanks to my friend Karri for the chapter title, LOL I had no clue what to name this one, lol! 

The next day, either Rick, Evy or both stayed with Ardeth at all times. 

Ardeth still didn't remember anything, but he became aware of some interesting feelings. _The woman, Evy, is very tender and caring,_ he thought. _It reminds me of…someone. Perhaps I really do know these people. Her husband, Rick, I feel a…camaraderie with, as if we were brothers. _He sighed, listening to Evy speak to the doctor. _How I wish I could leave this place._

Evy came back in, and saw his eyes open. "You're awake! How do you feel?"

"Not good," he replied, tiredly.

The answer surprised Evy. Ardeth usually didn't admit to pain even when he was half-dead with it. The stoic Med-jai always tried to be strong, even when he was not. The change made Evy worry more; the injury had not only robbed him of his memory, but had changed his personality as well! 

Evy tried not to let the worry show on her face, as she sat in the chair next to the bed. "The doctor said you can leave here tomorrow." In truth, the doctor had wanted to keep him longer, but Evy had insisted that they let her take him the next day; citing the probability that Ardeth would recover better at her home, instead of at an unfamiliar hospital surrounded by strangers. _Familiar_ things were what he needed to be around. 

Things that were _once_ familiar, at least.

Ardeth said nothing, though he looked relieved. "How did we meet?" he suddenly asked.

Evy hesitated. "Oh…uh…Rick, I, and my brother Jonathan were trying to find Hamunaptra, and you…er…found us."**1**

Ardeth frowned, saying nothing for a minute. "Go on."

"And then Imhotep—He Who Shall Not Be Named—was accidentally unearthed…" she left out mention that _she_ had been the one to do it. "…and he tried to kill us, but we defeated him…"

During this time, Ardeth merely stared at her. 

Evy stopped, and stared back. "Do you believe me?"

Ardeth didn't answer for a minute. "I _found_ you? What was my…" he paused, searching for a word. Evy had found today that Ardeth was having trouble remembering certain English words. The fact that he recalled the English language at all was interesting.

Evy knew what he was trying to ask. "You are the leader of the Med-jai, a tribe that watches and protects the city of Hamunaptra and other ancient places, from whatever evil may arise."

Ardeth frowned. "I am the leader?" he asked, incredulous.

Evy nodded, trying not to sigh. He didn't even remember the Med-jai!

"And we put the creature back into its grave?"

Evy noticed that he called Imhotep 'the creature' like he used to. "Yes. Twice, actually. Do you remember?"

Ardeth thought for a minute, and shook his head. He winced, regretting the motion. "Is there anything else that I should know?" he asked.

"Uhh…" Evy thought for a minute. _What do you not need to know?_ she thought to herself, sarcastically. "We live in London in a very big house that I'll be taking you to tomorrow. I work at the British Museum, we have many artifacts that I've found on digs, and artifacts that you've given me."

"I have?"

Evy nodded, leaving out the part that many of them he'd given to her for safekeeping against various foes, and _those_ were in her house, rather then on public display at the museum.

Ardeth sighed, and put a hand to his aching forehead, closing his eyes.

"Are you all right?" Evy asked, concerned. 

"Why can I not remember?" Ardeth asked, instead of answering. 

Evy patted his arm. "It happens, Ardeth, a head injury can jar the brain and make it swell, causing what they call 'concussion'. I don't know why your memory was affected, I don't think doctors have made it far enough in their knowledge to understand why."

Ardeth sighed, keeping his eyes closed, seeing that it hurt less to be in the dark. 

Evy kept her hand on his arm, in sympathy. She couldn't even imagine what he was going through.

"Thank you," he suddenly said.

"For what?"

Ardeth kept his eyes closed. "For staying with me, for caring…" his voice trailed off as he fell asleep.

Evy smiled, her eyes misting. She blinked the moisture back, and begged God to give her friend back his memory.

**1**  'The Mummy'


	4. An Unfamiliar Familiar Place

The next morning, Evy and Rick went straight to the hospital, intent on getting Ardeth out of there as soon as possible, afraid that the longer he stayed in an unfamiliar place, the worse his chance of regaining his memory. 

The doctor tried to change their minds, telling them that his patient's pain had not yet improved and that it obviously was not a wise thing for them to do. He relented only when Evy promised that they would have their family doctor treat him, and would bring him back if something bad occurred. 

Evy was glad that she and Rick had stayed with Ardeth, for they had gained his trust, and he let them lead him to the car and carefully help him inside. 

That was something that actually bothered Rick. Ardeth would _never_ so easily hand his life over to 'strangers', it shocked Rick that it had been so easy. 

Ardeth tried to watch the view out the window, trying to see if anything was familiar, but he quickly gave up when the fast-moving scenery started making him dizzy, and he had to put his head back and close his eyes. The car ride was bumpy, and he realized it would not be a comfortable trip.

Evy looked into the backseat, and easily saw Ardeth's discomfort. She realized that she should've stayed in the back with him. "Try to avoid the bumps," she told her husband.

"I am," Rick told her.

Evy sighed. "We're almost there, Ardeth," she told him. It wasn't _quite_ true, but she hoped that it would bring him some comfort.

When they finally pulled up, Ardeth's pain was worse and his head swam when Rick helped him out of the car. He was lightheaded, his legs felt weak and he leaned against Rick, who saw what was happening and held onto him until it passed.

"Ardeth!" Evy said, alarmed.

"Shhh," said Rick, as Evy had spoken pretty loudly. 

Ardeth stayed there with his eyes closed, one hand on his head, the other gripping Rick's arm in an attempt to stay upright. When the stabbing throbs finally started to subside enough for Ardeth to open his eyes, he let out a shaky breath and attempted to straighten up. 

Evy took his other arm, and tried to support some of his weight as she and Rick helped him into the house. 

They immediately brought him over to the fire, which Evy had told Jonathan to make sure he lit, as it was winter and Ardeth was not used to the cold. They carefully sat him on the couch, and Evy went to get him some tea. 

Rick sat in the armchair to the right of the couch, and watched him anxiously. 

Ardeth realized he was being studied, and opened his eyes. He tried to lift his head up, from resting against the back of the couch, but it felt too heavy. 

He sighed, feeling angry and frustrated.

"Ardeth?" Rick said.

"Yes?"

"Do you recognize this house?"

_Good idea! _Hope of regaining his memory helped Ardeth to slowly lift his head and look around the room. His hope died down when he saw that he recognized nothing. 

He looked back at Rick, who could read the expression on Ardeth's face. He heard Ardeth sigh, and knew the answer. 

"I am sorry I do not remember you and your wife," Ardeth said. "I hope you are not insulted."

"Insulted?" Rick shook his head. "Of course not! It isn't your fault." He grinned. "You know, most of our meetings were usually when something terrible was happening, maybe it's a good thing you don't remember us!" He laughed.

Ardeth frowned; wondering what could possibly be _that_ terrible. 

Evy came back with the tea then, and handed Ardeth his in a huge beer mug that belonged to Jonathan. "Now drink it all," she said, as if she were talking to a child.

Rick had to suppress a laugh when Evy didn't let go of the mug when Ardeth sipped it. "Evy, I think he can hold it himself."

Evy shot Rick a stern look when she saw him grinning at her, and she let go of the glass.

"Shukran," Ardeth said to her.

"Afwan," she replied. 

She didn't see the surprised look Ardeth gave her upon hearing her speak Arabic, which he'd spoken without thinking. 

"This is very good, Evelyn." 

Evy stopped pouring the tea in Rick's cup, and looked at Ardeth. "You called me Evelyn!"

Ardeth looked at her with a frown. "Is Evelyn not your name?"

Evy nodded, putting the teapot down. "Yes, but I didn't tell you that. I told you 'Evy'."

Ardeth's eyebrows went up. "So you did."

"You remembered something!" Rick said, happily.

"This is wonderful! Maybe everything will come back to you now!" said Evy.

They were all quiet as Rick and Evy watched Ardeth, waiting.

"Well? Do you remember anything else?" she asked, after a few minutes.

Ardeth sighed. "No." He put the empty mug down, and laid his aching head back on the couch. 

Evy walked closer to him. "You should be in bed." She beckoned for Rick to come over, and they slowly helped Ardeth to stand. 

They held onto him tightly when he swayed a little, blinking back dizziness. When he felt that he could walk without falling over, he nodded carefully, and they helped him walk up the huge staircase. 

"One thing...I _know_ I don't remember," he said, when they'd paused to give him a rest.

"What's that?"

"So many stairs."

The statement got a short laugh out of them. They finally made it to the top, and brought him to the bedroom directly across from theirs. Evy noticed that climbing the stairs had seemed to make him limp slightly, and she wished Ardeth could tell them what had happened in that accident. Ardeth didn't complain about his leg, so she said nothing as they brought him in and got him settled. 

"Are you hungry?" Evy asked him.

"No," Ardeth said, his eyes closing slowly.

Evy wanted him to eat, but she patted his arm, and pulled the covers up to his chin. "If you want something and none of us are in here, just tug on the bell-pull," she said, indicating the huge rope that hung next to the bed. 

Ardeth glanced at it, making a face as if he'd been wondering what it was. 

Rick came over after lighting the fireplace, to see that Ardeth was asleep. He and Evy tiptoed out of the room, and down the stairs, Evy wanting to put away the tea service before it was forgotten.

"I can't _believe_ this," she said, picking up the teapot. "Something as stupid as a bus accident taking away his memory."

Rick nodded. "After all the things he's survived." He shook his head. "Ironic."

"What is?"

"Remember what he said after we took care of the mummies on the bus?"**2**

Evy shuddered. "I don't think I'll ever forget that, dear."

Rick sighed. "I know. Anyway, remember after we killed all the mummies, I asked him if he was okay and he said, 'This was my first bus ride'."

Evy smiled, laughing softly. "Yes, I remember at the time that it was that absolute _last_ thing I expected him to say."

"Well, this was his _second_ bus ride, and look what happened."

Evy nodded, holding the whole tea service tray. "Oh, Rick! That's true."

Rick shook his head. "Ardeth and buses don't mix. Or maybe it's Ardeth and England in general."

Evy laughed again, and brought the tray into the kitchen. 

Rick was about to sit in his chair near the fire when he heard a noise. Looking up, he saw Jonathan stumbling down the steps in a lazy, half-asleep fashion.

He stood. "Jonathan!" he tried to whisper-yell. "Shut up! Ardeth is up there."

Jonathan stopped dead, and almost tumbled down the remaining stairs. "What? He is?"

"Yesssss," Rick said, annoyed. 

Evy came back in then, and shook her head at her brother. "If you promise to make it there quietly, you can look in on him. I _don't_ want him woken up."

"Right, Old Mum."

"Oh, Rick," Evy said, turning at the bottom of the stairs. "Could you call the doctor, and get him here please?"

"Sure honey."

"Thanks," she made a sweet face at him, and he smiled back. 

**2  '**The Mummy Returns'****


	5. Secret Passage? Oops...

The doctor had come, and expressed the same opinion as the hospital; he had no idea when or if Ardeth would regain his memory. 

Jonathan stood well behind everyone, waiting for the doctor to leave. He had an idea, and he hoped it would work. 

After the doctor left, Jonathan strode over. "Ardeth, old boy! Put any mummies back in their graves lately?"

Ardeth looked at him with a confused frown.

Jonathan sighed. "It didn't work, eh?"

Ardeth just blinked at him, not knowing for the life of him who this strange person was.

Evy sighed as well, wishing it _had_ worked. "Ardeth, this is Jonathan, the brother I mentioned."

Ardeth nodded. "Ah." He sighed. "I am sorry I do not remember you, Jonathan."

Jonathan shrugged it off, waving his arm in a 'doesn't matter' fashion. "Quite all right, hardly anyone ever remembers ol' Jonathan anyway."

Suddenly the phone rang, and Ardeth jumped. He hoped no one noticed. 

Rick picked it up. "O'Connell residence…sure, hang on. Evy?" he held the phone out to his wife.

She took it. "Hello…what? Can't find it? I can't...oh for goodness sake…all right. Goodbye." She hung up, and turned to the three men who were staring at her, wondering what that was all about.

"That was the museum. They seem to have misplaced Cleopatra's Goblet."

Jonathan laughed. "A goblet, eh?"

"They need you to go in and help them find it?" Rick asked.

Evy nodded, looking exasperated. 

"Why such commotion over a cup?" Jonathan asked.

Evy sighed, going over to the mirror in the room and fussing with her hair. "One of the newspapers is going to do an article on certain items, and _that_ is one of them. They need it for a picture."

"Oh."

Evy sighed, looking at Ardeth, whose eyes were closing again. "Oh dear, Ardeth…are you hungry yet?"

"That's okay Evy, _I'll_ cook!" Jonathan told her. 

"We want to get him better, not poison him," Rick muttered.

"I heard that."

"I am fine, Evy," Ardeth said, wishing everyone would be quiet. 

"Oooh…" she said, annoyed that the museum had to bother her at a time like this, when she told them the previous day she'd be out for a time. "They'll just have to wait. I have to feed you first."

Ardeth looked at Rick as if to say, 'Is she always this persistent?'

Rick made a face back, as if to say, 'yup.'

********************

Rick sighed, as he peeked into Ardeth's room for the tenth time. He saw that his friend was still asleep, not having moved from the position he was in when Rick had checked on him last. Rick went into the room and sat in the chair near the bed. He couldn't stop the sigh that came, as he watched his injured best friend, a friend that didn't remember him.

Rick always tried to be the tough guy, but in truth, he was incredibly upset over the situation. He never had a friend as close as Ardeth before, and to lose him this way was the one of the worst things imaginable. He had no idea if Ardeth would _ever_ get his memory back, and it scared him. To him, it seemed that someone who lost their memory _couldn't_ get it back. _That's brain damage, obviously, _he thought. _How can that be fixed?_

He sighed again, and suddenly heard a noise. Looking at Ardeth, he saw his face twitch slightly. A few seconds later he made the noise again, and a gasp. 

"Ardeth?" Rick said, getting up from the chair to stand over him. 

Ardeth's body jerked again, and an agitated look came over his face. Rick realized he was having a nightmare, and tried to shake him awake gently. 

"Ardeth, wake up," he said. "Ardeth?"

Ardeth jumped, and opened his eyes. He winced and put a hand on his forehead, covering his eyes with a soft groan.

Rick sighed for the millionth time. _Man, he should retire young, or something, _he thought. _He's been through enough for five lifetimes._ "Ardeth? You okay?"

Ardeth slowly removed his hand, and nodded, eyes closed. 

"You were having a nightmare," Rick said. "What was it about? Did you remember anything?"

Ardeth thought for a minute. "No. Nor do I remember the dream."

"Great," Rick plopped back down in the chair. 

They were both silent for a minute or two, before Rick asked, "What's the last thing you remember? The accident? Before it, after it?"

Ardeth tried to think, wishing his head would stop hurting more and more with each attempt he made at thought. "I do not remember an accident…or what happened before. I am simply here."

Rick's jaw dropped. "You don't remember _anything_, literally?"

Ardeth sighed, not understanding it himself. "I remember this language, or most of it. I remember what appears to be my _own_ language. I remember…I remember…"

"What?"

"Nothing else."

Rick just sat there, in shock, not able to accept the news. "We gotta _do_ something about this!" he said. 

"I wish I knew _what_, my friend."

Rick just sat there, shaking his head. It was even worse then he thought; he wondered if Evy realized it was this bad. "Ardeth, if you remember something, if _anything_ pops into your head, even if it seems strange or even ridiculous, _please_ tell me, maybe if I explain whatever it is to you, your memory will come back."

"All right…" Ardeth said, closing his eyes.

Rick sighed, watching as he fell asleep. He looked at his watch, wondering when Evy would get back. He was hungry, but didn't want to leave Ardeth, in case he had another nightmare or something. 

Ardeth seemed to be sleeping peacefully, and Rick's stomach growled, so he tiptoed out of the room, to grab some food.

Just after he left, Ardeth suddenly woke up, with a start. He lay there, seeing confusing images in his mind. Try as he might, he could make no sense of them, could not even describe them; it was as if something was hovering just out of his reach. He sighed, and the images cleared from his brain. He found that he was sweating, and before he thought about it, he was trying to sit up and came to an unsteady position on the side of the bed. His head throbbed mercilessly at the movement, and he closed his eyes, putting a hand on the nightstand to keep his balance. Eventually it died down to a more 'tolerable' level. _I need some air,_ he thought, finding it stifling in the room. 

He stood slowly, and dizzily made his way to the door, walking close to the wall in case he needed the support. Leaning in the doorway, he looked to the right to see a long hall, and a shorter one to the left, where the steps to the downstairs were. He sighed, knowing he'd never make it down them, with his dizzy brain. He looked to the right again, and something told him to go in that direction. He obeyed, slowly making his way down the hall, where a large bookcase stood. Not even realizing what he was doing, he pulled a book out, and the bookcase swung open. He walked through the short tunnel, leaning on the wall now, head spinning and his breathing labored, hardly noticing that the floor sloped downwards. He needed fresh air, and he needed it now! Suddenly he came to the end of the tunnel, and pushed on what looked like a solid wall, which opened to the outside of the house. 

He took a deep breath of the refreshing air, and sighed with relief. There was a bench placed conveniently nearby, and he gratefully sat on it. After a few minutes, he slowly came back to himself, and realized that as good as the cool air had felt on his heated body, it was actually freezing outside. He looked around, trying to figure out where the door was. 

He stood, and went back to the wall of the house, and felt around for the opening. Not finding it, he sighed, and leaned against the house in exasperation. _This must qualify as remembering something,_ he thought, regarding the secret tunnel. _If only you remembered how to get back in! _


	6. No More Secret Passages for You, Ardeth!

Rick tiptoed back into Ardeth's room, and stopped dead at what he saw, or rather, what he _didn't_ see. 

The bed was empty.

Rick blinked. "Ardeth?" He looked towards the restroom, figuring he must be in there, but the door was open, and the light was not on. He ran out, and checked all the rooms. 

"Ardeth? Where are you?"

He got no answer as he looked, and he ran back downstairs, wondering if Ardeth had gone down there and he hadn't known. It took him a while to check all the rooms, and he ran back upstairs and back into Ardeth's room, to see that he had not returned.

Rick began to get scared. Ardeth had obviously gotten up, and may've passed out somewhere, or something, which would explain why he hadn't answered Rick's yells. He checked all the rooms near Ardeth's again, and sighed when he got to the last one and found nothing. _Oh man, what happened to him?_ he thought, leaning against the bookcase. His weight made it slam shut, and he realized that it had been open! Rick's jaw dropped when he realized what it meant, and he opened it and ran through the tunnel.

Ardeth sat on the bench, trying to ignore the cold. It was nasty, he felt like he'd never experienced such weather before, but he didn't know if that was true, or if he simply didn't remember it. He sighed, watching as his breath froze in the air. His nose was numb, and he tried to wiggle it to bring back some sensation. 

Suddenly he jumped when the invisible door he couldn't find opened, and Rick came running out. 

"Ardeth! What—how—?"

"I seem to have remembered something," Ardeth said, with a sheepish look.

Rick shook his head, and went over and took his arm, helping him stand. "Ardeth, you're frozen! Why did you come out here?" 

Ardeth sighed, as Rick helped him to the wall opening. "I needed air."

Rick frowned as they walked through the tunnel. It took them a while to walk up the slope; Ardeth's excursion seemed to have drained away whatever strength he had. They reached the room, and Rick helped Ardeth back into the bed. He sighed as his head hit the pillow, grateful to feel its softness on his achy body. 

Rick sat back in the chair. "You said you remembered it? The secret entrance? How did it come to you?"

Ardeth sighed. "I do not know, I started walking that way and I pulled out the book that opened the door. After I was outside and I realized what I had done, I could not find the entrance to get back in."

Rick's hopes sank. "So you didn't _really_ remember, it was more like an automatic thing."

Ardeth did an uncharacteristic thing then: he shrugged. Pulling the covers up under his chin, he tried to suppress a shiver. Strange that the room had felt so warm earlier, and now felt cold, after his little trip. 

"Ardeth?"

He opened his eyes. "Yes?"

"Promise me you won't wander off again, this is a big house, and there are more secret entrances. It would take me a while to find out which one you went through," Rick said, with a smile.

Ardeth smiled back, and nodded agreement.

********************

Rick opened his eyes, realizing that he'd dozed off in the chair. He heard the sound that had awoke him again; light footfalls coming up the staircase. 

Evy quietly came in the room, grasping Rick's hand when he held his out to her. "How is he?" she whispered. 

Rick kissed her hand, and was about to say 'fine', but he rethought it. 

Evy frowned, when she saw him hesitate. "What is it?" She looked back at Ardeth as if expecting to see something wrong with him.

"He doesn't remember anything."

Evy blinked. "We know that. Amnesia."

Rick shook his head, still holding onto her hand. "No, I mean he doesn't remember _anything_. Before the accident, why he came to England, nothing. He said, 'I am simply here'."

Evy looked nervous. "Are you serious?"

Rick nodded, looking _very_ serious.

"Oh my..."

They just stood there for a few minutes, watching Ardeth sleep, both of them feeling a mixture of shock, concern, fear, and sadness.

Evy eventually sighed, and dragged a chair over. "I sent a message to Safti."

Rick looked at her. "Did you?" he said, sounding depressed.

Evy nodded. "I explained what happened, and asked him to come. Maybe when Ardeth sees him, his memory will return."

Rick nodded. "Hope so." He was glad at the thought of seeing Safti again; he just wished it were under better circumstances. 

********************

_Tawflik was an excellent fighter. Ardeth fought as well as he could, thanking the adrenaline rush for the sudden burst of strength—a burst he knew would not last very long as he slashed his scimitar towards his enemy's arm, only to have it deflected hard enough to send shock waves through his arm from his shoulder to his fingertips. His scimitar was sent flying out of his hand, and Tawflik started to laugh. "I win, Med-jai!" he yelled._**3__**

Ardeth opened his eyes with a slight gasp, still hearing the echo of his enemy. It died down, and when Ardeth tried to remember who the man was, he realized that he couldn't remember what he'd just dreamed. He struggled to think, but it would not come back to him. He sighed in frustration; his memory was within reach, but no matter how hard he tried he simply could not grasp it.

Suddenly a head peeked into the room, and Ardeth saw that it was Evy. 

"Morning, Ardeth. How's your head?"

_Morning?_ Ardeth thought, not realizing that the whole night had passed. "Painful," he answered, trying to ignore the incessant throbbing.

Evy gave him a sympathetic look, as she came closer. "Rick's making breakfast, and I wanted to check that bandage."

She saw the look Ardeth made upon hearing that Rick was cooking. "Don't worry, he won't poison you like Jonathan probably would."

Ardeth gave her a little smile, and sat up so she could do her nursing. 

Evy unwrapped the bandage, and her eyes widened when she took off the gauze covering the wound, and saw the nasty, stitched-up gash on the left side of his forehead. It started over his eye and ran into the hairline. Evy guessed it to be about four inches long. No wonder he had amnesia!

"Ardeth," she said, as she gently dabbed at the wound with antiseptic. "Are you sure you don't remember anything at _all_ about the accident?"

Ardeth tried not to wince at her ministrations. "Nothing."

Evy sighed, dying to know exactly what had happened, and why he'd come to England in the first place. 

She finished making sure his wound was clean, and then taped a new bandage over it. She looked at him with a sigh, seeing the pain evident on his usually stoic face. "Ardeth…"

"Yes?"

"Remember what I was saying to you in the hospital, about Imhotep, and you being the Med-jai leader?"

Ardeth nodded.

"Well…when you come to England for a visit, you always send word and we meet you at the dock or whatnot. When you show up unannounced, it's always because you had no _time_ to send word, because something horrible was occurring and you had to get to us as soon as possible."

Ardeth listened, saying nothing.

"Well, you didn't send word, this time, and I am afraid that why ever you came here, it's now too late to stop what needed to be stopped, or…"

Ardeth frowned. "This happens often?"

That answer shattered all of Evy's hopes. "Yes, Ardeth…too often. There is always someone to fight, in your line of work."

Ardeth sighed, and closed his eyes. "I _need_ to remember!"

Evy patted his arm. "I am sorry to cause you this stress now, Ardeth, but yes, you _do_ need to try, the world may be at stake!" She frowned at the horrible cliché. "If you were to remember, we might be able to prevent it, still."

She watched him quietly as he said nothing, his eyes squeezed shut. Finally he opened them, looking dejected. "I am sorry, I can not remember _anything_. I do not know _why_ I came here."

Evy gave him a sympathetic smile, trying to hide her own nerves for his sake. "Well, the fact that the world is still intact four days later is a good sign. Perhaps you _did_ simply come for a visit." She highly doubted that, for Ardeth would not simply leave on a whim, without sending word and receiving a reply. 

Ardeth nodded, doubting it also, but going along with her.

3 My story, 'Wise One' http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=426671


	7. Ardeth, Meet Alex...

I must say again, THANK YOU all soooooo much for the fantastic reviews! WOO HOOOOOO!

"Well," Evy said, slapping his hands on her thighs. "Breakfast. I'd better go see if the chef is finished."

"Evy," Ardeth called out, before she could leave. "I would like to come downstairs."

She looked at him, hesitant.

"Please? I have been lying in bed for four days. I would like to get up for a short while."

Evy sighed, and nodded. "All right." She helped him get out of the bed, and supported as much of his weight as she could. 

Ardeth tried to walk under as much of his own power as possible, not wanting to overburden the slight woman. They took the stairs very slowly, both of them nearly missing the last step when they suddenly heard Rick's voice.

"What are you doing?!" he bellowed.

"Ardeth wanted to get up," Evy said, stating the obvious.  

"I can see that," Rick replied, running into the living room from the kitchen, and helping lead Ardeth to the couch. 

"How's you head?" Rick asked. "Is the pain any better yet?"

"A little," Ardeth admitted.

Rick and Evy smiled. "Good!" Evy exclaimed. 

The front door suddenly opened, and Jonathan called out, "Helloooooo?"

"In here!" Evy yelled back, excitedly. She gasped when she saw Ardeth wince.

"It _was_ better," he said.

Running feet were heard, and Evy quickly said, "Ardeth, there's someone we'd like you to, uh, 'meet'…"

Suddenly a human missile propelled itself onto the couch, where Ardeth sat. 

"Ardeth!" 

Ardeth found himself suddenly being hugged by the missile. It was a small boy. 

"Ardeth! It's Alex! Do you remember me?" he said, pulling back and looking at him.

Ardeth looked into the boy's face. His blue eyes were pleading…and somehow familiar. He looked at Evy and Rick. It was obvious that he was their son; he looked more like Rick then Evy. 

Alex took his hesitation to mean 'no', and he sighed. 

"You do look…familiar," Ardeth said, hoping to make the boy feel better. 

It worked, for he perked up, and smiled. Evy, Rick, and Jonathan exchanged happy glances. 

Alex turned around and hugged his parents. "I love vacations!" he said, making them all laugh. Then he sniffed the air. "What's that smell?"

"My food!" Rick yelled, and ran into the kitchen.

********************

To Rick's relief, his food did not burn, and they all ate and talked with Alex for the next few hours, the boy telling them _everything_ that went on at school during the past couple months.

Ardeth didn't say much. He silently listened and watched the O'Connell family, hoping that something he saw or heard would jog his memory. He sighed in frustration after a while, when nothing happened except his headache increasing. He saw Evy throw worried looks at him, but he wasn't about to interrupt the family reunion with his discomfort. He wished that Alex would talk a little softer; but he knew that the boy probably didn't realize how much pain he was in. 

Suddenly he realized that there was no more noise, and it startled him to hear the sudden quiet. He opened his eyes to see everyone looking at him, and Evy froze in her tracks where she stood, a few feet away, holding a blanket. 

"You're awake," she said. 

Ardeth blinked, a little groggy. It took him a few seconds to become fully aware of his surroundings for some reason.

"Ardeth?" Rick said, coming closer.

Ardeth found his voice. "Yes?"

"You fell asleep. Do you want to stay here for a while or would you rather we take you upstairs?"

Ardeth was about to say 'upstairs', knowing there'd be less noise, but his senses were drifting off to sleep again, and he knew he wouldn't have the energy to make it up the steps. "Here," he answered.

Evy covered him with the blanket, and they all watched him worriedly as he fell right back to sleep.

"He's gonna be okay, won't he Mum?" Alex asked, standing beside her.

Evy forced a smile onto her face. "Of course, Alex! He'll be fine." _I hope. _

********************

_*creak*_

Ardeth woke with a start, having heard a strange sound. He tried to see what it was, realizing that he was no longer in the living room, but now in the bedroom. It took a minute for the memory to surface: of being half asleep when Rick and Jonathan had helped him up the stairs. 

He tried again to see through the darkness of the room. If not for the small lamp that Evy had left on in there, it would've been pitch black. 

_*creak*_

Ardeth tried to slowly turn over towards the noise, but couldn't see anything. Suddenly he heard the sound of someone bumping into furniture, and a whispered mutter. 

"Alex?" he said.

He heard a gasp. "Ardeth! Y-you're awake."

"Yes."

Suddenly lightning flashed, illuminating the room, and Ardeth finally saw his intruder. Alex gasped again, and ran closer.

The sudden flash of bright light in the dark room sent a wave of pain through Ardeth's head, and he closed his eyes. Thunder suddenly reverberated through the city, making Alex jump onto the bed in fright. 

"Did I wake you up Ardeth? I didn't mean too."

"Why did you come here?" Ardeth asked, not realizing the obvious reason.

"I woke up from the lightning…I-I'm afraid of storms…"

"Ah," he said, understanding now. He heard Alex sigh, and when lightning flashed again, he felt the boy bury his head in the pillow beside his in an effort to block it out. After hearing what Alex had seen and experienced during the incidents that Rick and Evy had told him about, Ardeth wondered why Alex would be afraid of a thunderstorm. But then again, perhaps the storm's violence reminded the boy of the horrors he'd seen.

"Is it okay if I stay here?" Alex asked, the fear evident in his voice.

Eyes still closed, Ardeth nodded, before realizing that Alex couldn't see him in the dark. "Yes, you may stay."

"Thanks!" 

Alex curled up in the bed, with a sigh of relief. It turned into another gasp when lightning flashed and thunder sounded almost simultaneously. Ardeth heard no rain though, and he wondered why.

"H-have you ever been scared, Ardeth?" Alex asked.

Ardeth sighed before answering. Having no memory, and not knowing if he'd ever regain it scared him a lot.

"Oh," Alex said, when he hesitated. "You can't remember if you have?"

"I can recall nothing about the past," he said, with a sigh.

"Does it scare you to not be able to remember?" Alex asked.

Ardeth was amazed the boy seemed to know his thoughts. "Yes, it does."

Lightning flashed again, and suddenly Ardeth felt something placed against his chest. He opened his eyes, and picked it up.

A teddy bear.

The gesture warmed Ardeth's heart, and he turned onto his back, so he could look at the boy, who was sitting up cross-legged now. Ardeth saw another teddy bear in Alex's grasp.

"When I'm scared, I hug a teddy bear," Alex explained. "It helps." He pointed to the one Ardeth was holding. "I've had that one since I was a kid."

Ardeth smiled inwardly at that statement. What did Alex consider himself now, an adult?

"It's my favorite," Alex continued.

Ardeth smiled at him, touched by the young boy's compassion. "I am honored. Thank you."

Despite the dark, he knew Alex smiled back. 


	8. 'Softy' in London

"Evy."

"Ummm…"

Rick smiled, looking at his wife sleeping beside him. "Evy, wake up."

"Ummm…" she said again, snuggling closer to him.

Rick sighed, wishing he didn't have to move. If it weren't for their injured friend in the next room, he would go back to sleep. "Eeeeeeeeevy."

This time she didn't answer; instead bringing up a hand and rubbing her face. Then she opened her eyes and looked at her laughing husband. "What is so funny?"

"You," he said. "You wouldn't get up."

She made a mock-stern face at him. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Sure."

They got out of bed, and Evy threw a robe over her nightgown. "I'm rather surprised that Alex didn't sneak into our bed last night."

"Huh?" Rick said. "Oh yeah! The storm. That was pretty weird, seeing how it's winter. Wow, look out the window!"

By the sound of Rick's voice, she knew what she would see. However, her patient was more important, so Evy left the room, and opened Ardeth's door. What she saw made her stop in surprise.

Ardeth was still asleep, and on the other side of the bed—with his arm hanging over the side, looking like he was about to fall off—was Alex.

_No wonder he didn't sneak into our bed, _she thought. _He snuck into Ardeth's instead!_

Rick came in then, slinging his suspenders on, and stopped at the sight. He looked at Evy, matching her smile. He quietly went over to the bed, and gently scooped his son into his arms. As he brought him out, something fell.

"Rick," she whispered, and picked up the teddy bear. She handed it to him, and went to the bed. 

Ardeth looked deeply asleep. Evy carefully adjusted the covers around him, and felt something under them. Pulling them down a few inches, her jaw dropped.

Rick came in again, in time to see what had Evy so transfixed. 

Ardeth was lying on his side, and clutched to his chest was a teddy bear. Alex's favorite, no less. 

The two of them just stared, never imagining seeing a sight like that. It was quite the image; big, strong Medjai warrior clutching a teddy bear in his sleep. 

Evy's first thought was 'awww!' but when she remembered reality—the 'real' Ardeth would _not_ sleep with a teddy bear—she sighed. 

Rick seemed to know her thoughts, and he put an arm around her. 

"Don't worry," he whispered. "He'll get his memory back."

She sighed again, and nodded unconvincingly. 

"And when he does," Rick continued, with a laugh. "We can torture him with stories of his uncharacteristic behavior."

********************

_*knock knock*_

Rick went over to the door, and opened it, hoping it was one person in particular.

It was. "Softy!" Rick exclaimed.

Safti, Ardeth's second-in-command, walked into the house with a worried look on his face. He smiled slightly at Rick though, and shook his hand. "Good to see you, Rick."

"Same to you. I imagine you want to see Ardeth…"

The worried look returned. "Yes, how is he?"

"Asleep," Rick said, as they walked further into the house. "Did Evy explain it all, in her telegram?"

Safti sighed. "She said that Ardeth had been in an accident resulting in a head injury, and that his memory has been lost."

Rick nodded.

Safti shook his head. "I have heard of such things happening, but have never seen anyone suffering the affliction."

Rick sighed. "Me either, until now." 

Just then Evy came down the stairs, and smiled when she saw Safti. She ran over and hugged him.

Safti smiled at her warmness. 

"You arrived fast! What, did you take a plane?" she asked.

Safti nodded. "Yes. I wanted to get here as soon as possible." He looked around the house. "England is very… elaborate," he commented.

"Oh! Your first time to England!" Evy exclaimed. "Are you cold? Come to the fire…"

"I am all right. I would like to see Ardeth."

Evy nodded, and lead the way to the stairs.

As the three of them walked towards the room, Rick whispered, "Just to warn you, don't be surprised when Ardeth acts…different."

Safti looked at him, with a frown. "Different?"

Rick shrugged. "He's not the same."

Safti sighed, wondering in what way. They entered the room to see Ardeth still in the same position, and Evy was glad that she had covered up the teddy bear, knowing that Ardeth would be embarrassed out of his mind if Safti should see him with it. If Ardeth was _in_ his right mind, that is. 

Safti stood next to the bed, and bent over slightly to study his commander and life-long friend. Seeing the bandage and healing scratches, he sighed. Straightening up, he kept his gaze on his friend's pale face. "He is not well."

_That is an understatement, _Rick thought. 

"He can not remember anything about the accident?" Safti whispered.

They both shook their heads. 

Safti turned and walked a short distance away, Rick and Evy following. 

"Why did Ardeth come to England?" Safti asked.

Rick and Evy's jaws dropped. "You mean _you_ don't know?!" Rick sputtered.

Safti shook his head. He frowned when the couple looked at each other with expressions of dread. "You do not know either?" 

"No! Oh Safti, we didn't know he was here until I was told he was in the hospital," said Evy. "He didn't tell you he was leaving Egypt?!"

Safti shook his head. "I was not at the camp the day he left, when I returned I was quite surprised to find him gone…"

They all turned and looked at the sleeping Med-jai, wondering what they were going to do now.


	9. Bad Timing for a Flashback...

WOW! Over 100 reviews! I have to say, thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you! I am soooooo happy! Who was the 100th reviewer, you ask? Gee, Patty, I wonder who? ;)  

"I hope he remembers who you are."

"As do I."

Ardeth heard the voices, one belonging to Evy, the other belonging to a stranger. He opened his eyes, and saw the O'Connell's talking to what could only be described as a _huge_ man.

Ardeth frowned as he watched, trying to figure out if he knew him or not. The man wore black robes like his own, and had the same type of markings on his face. He also had long dark hair and beard; they looked like they could be brothers. 

Suddenly Evy looked towards him, and gasped. She stood and went closer to the bed. "Ardeth! How do you feel? How's your head?"

"It hurts."

Safti frowned, already seeing the change in his friend.

Evy sighed, and turned to Safti. "Ardeth, um, this is someone you know…"

Safti walked closer to the bed. "Ardeth, it is I," he said; to see if Ardeth could recall his name.

Ardeth just looked at him, puzzled.

Safti's heart sank at his friend's confused expression. They had grown up together, been the best of friends for all of their 32 years. "I am Safti, your second-in-command."

Ardeth blinked. "Softy?" he said.

Despite themselves, Evy and Rick busted out laughing. Rick quickly tried to cover it up with a cough, while Evy had to clamp her hands over her mouth and turn around so that she could try to laugh soundlessly without Ardeth seeing.

Safti was shocked for a minute, before he too started to laugh. 

Evy wasn't able to hold it in, upon hearing Safti, so she ran into the bathroom. They could hear her laughing, the walls not thick enough to contain it. 

Safti shook his head. "Ah, continuing the tradition started by the O'Connell's," he said.

Poor Ardeth just stared at everyone, as if they were nuts.

Safti sighed then, realizing the seriousness of Ardeth's memory loss. It hurt, that his friend had no idea who he was. 

********************

Ardeth requested to be taken downstairs again, and after they ate breakfast the adults went in the living room to talk.

Ardeth was completely engrossed in Safti's tales of the Med-jai, as were Rick and Evy; who were now hearing things they hadn't known before. 

Suddenly the door burst open, and a very wet and red-cheeked Alex came running in. "Mum, Dad! I want Safti and Ardeth to come outside."

Safti looked quizzically at the boy, wondering why.

Rick knew why. "Safti can come if he wants to, but I don't think Ardeth should."

"But he's never seen it! I mean he did once, but I know he can't remember…"

"You wish to show me something Alex?" Ardeth asked, wondering what 'it' was.

Alex nodded, excitedly.

Suddenly Jonathan came in, as soaked at Alex. "Well? Everyone coming?"

********************

After Evy finished making a fuss over bundling Ardeth up against the cold, everyone went outside. 

Alex and Jonathan immediately ran into the yard and made snowballs, throwing them at each other. 

"What is the meaning of this?" Safti said, watching them.

"It's fun! Look," Alex said, making a snowball. "You roll the snow up and throw it at each other," he said, and threw it at his father.

"Hey!" Rick said, when it smashed into his chest. "You're gonna regret that, kid!" He joined in the fight, smashing one into Alex's back, who'd turned around to avoid his father's snowball.

Safti bent down and picked up some snow, making a ball out of it. He stood and eyed it curiously, before making a surprisingly mischievous face at Evy. He then threw it with all his might, at an unsuspecting Rick.

It smashed Rick in the back of the head, who nearly lost his balance with its force. "Whoa!" he said.

"That," said Safti. "Is for starting the whole, 'Softy' thing."

Everyone laughed at that, except for Ardeth, who was seeing something other then what was in front of him. 

_As they walked outside, Rick heard a string of Arabic come from behind him and turned to see Ardeth —bundled up in everything they could find that fit him— trying to keep his balance, finally grabbing at the side of the house._

_Evy tried not to laugh, as she went over and took his arm. "It's ice, Ardeth, very slippery!"_

_Ardeth nodded, watching in amazement as his breath froze in the air. He allowed her to pull him away from the side of the house, and they slowly started to walk, when suddenly a snowball came out of nowhere, smacking Ardeth on the side of his head. He wasn't ready for it, naturally, and slipped and fell in the snow, Evy going down with him._

_Evy busted out laughing as they sat in the snow, and she grabbed some, rolled it up, and threw it back at Jonathan, who ducked in time._

_Rick went over to them, laughing himself, never thinking he'd ever see a sight like that. Ardeth Bay, dignified leader of the Med-jai, conquered by frozen precipitation.  He frowned at the wince on Ardeth's face._

_"You okay?" he asked._

_Ardeth nodded, and tried to brush the snow off his shoulder. It was a waste of time, for another snowball came his way, smacking him where he'd just wiped it off._

_Jonathan stood there laughing hysterically._

_Ardeth picked up some snow, and rolled it up the way he'd seen Evy do. He threw it at Jonathan, who was laughing so hard he didn't see it coming. It smacked him right in the face, and he gasped and started sputtering._

_Ardeth started laughing, making Evy and Rick start up again. Rick pulled Evy up off the ground, and held his hand out again to Ardeth._

_Ardeth took it and got up slowly, wincing again, and Rick understood why. He sure knew what a bruised tailbone felt like—having lived in Chicago—and he almost laughed, but suddenly a missile-sized snowball smacked Ardeth in the chest, sending him back to the snowy ground with a grunt, definitely adding to the bruise._

_Rick turned around. "Jonathan! Leave the guy alone, he's not used to this! What's the matter with you?"_

_Jonathan had a smirk on his face, but it quickly fled when he saw that he'd hurt his friend. He ran over._

_"I say, I'm sorry old boy." He grabbed Ardeth's other arm and they pulled him up. Jonathan didn't see the fistful of snow Ardeth held until it was too late._

_Jonathan brushed the snow off his chest, and said, "Well, at least you didn't aim for my face this time."_

_"Next time you may not be so fortunate," Ardeth said, smiling. Suddenly his expression changed._

_"What?" Jonathan said, looking around to see that snow was falling. He looked back at Ardeth to see what almost looked like awe on the Med-jai's face as he watched the flakes fall._

_Evy laughed, at Ardeth's expression of wonder. He looked like a little child._

_Rick smiled, shaking his head. "Ardeth, you definitely need to get out more."_**4__**

Evy started to laugh as she watched the men throw the snow at each other, and she started to walk a little closer, holding firmly to Ardeth's arm. Ardeth, however, didn't move, and she didn't know until she'd already taken a step. She turned to see why he wasn't walking with her, and as she turned she slipped on ice.

Ardeth was broken out of his flashback by Evy latching onto his arm with both hands, in an attempt to keep herself upright. He wasn't ready for it, and so did not try to catch her. They both went down, landing on their backsides.

Ardeth gasped as the impact painfully jarred his head. He closed his eyes as the world spun, and slumped over onto Evy.

"Ardeth!" she cried in alarm, holding him up.

Everyone stopped dead, and ran over to them.

"What happened?!" Rick shouted, as he and Safti grabbed Ardeth's arms.

"I-I slipped," Evy snapped back, concern making her words sound harsher than intended.

"Ardeth," Safti said, worriedly. "Ardeth? Look at me."

To their relief Ardeth opened his eyes, looking at them dazedly. 

"Let's get him into the house," Rick said, and he and Safti pulled him to his feet. Their relief turned to fear when Ardeth's knees buckled, and he passed out in their arms.

Alex and Jonathan exchanged guilty glances, as they watched them quickly usher Ardeth through the door.

**4** My story, 'The Euphrates Stone'  http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=399065


	10. Waiting Stinks

Everyone kept the vigil in Ardeth's room as they waited for him to wake up.

Alex and Jonathan said nothing the whole time, feeling horribly guilty.

Evy fussed over Ardeth, as they expected, while Rick paced, and Safti sat watching his life-long friend, sighing occasionally. 

Ardeth finally awoke two hours later. 

Everyone jumped up and surrounded him when they heard the soft moan. 

"Ardeth?" said Evy. 

Ardeth opened his eyes, and winced. He closed them again, wishing the room would stay still.

"Open your eyes again, Ardeth," Evy pleaded.

He did, with a sigh. 

Having seen his friend injured many times, Safti saw what the problem was without Ardeth having to voice it. "He is dizzy," he told her. 

Alex came closer and grabbed onto Ardeth's arm. "I'm sorry, Ardeth!" he said, starting to cry.

Ardeth looked at him—or tried to, anyway. "It is not your fault, Alex."

"Yes it is, I wanted you to come outside to see the snow!" he said, sniffling. 

"I...have seen it before…"

They weren't sure if that was a question or a statement. 

"Yes, once before, Ardeth," said Evy. "Do you remember?"

Ardeth blinked, trying to bring back what he'd seen in the flashback. "I saw you, Rick, and Jonathan. We were outside…" he frowned with an exasperated sigh. The fall he and Evy had taken and the resulting unconsciousness served to have robbed him of the details that the flashback contained.

"Jonathan…" he said. "Jonathan hit me with one…"

Jonathan smiled, remembering. "That's right, old boy, and you got me back good."

Safti was shocked to hear that Ardeth had been in a snowball fight, of all things! "When was this?" he asked.

"When the situation with the Euphrates Stone happened," Rick answered.

"Ah," said Safti, trying not to remember that horrible incident. 

"Ardeth," Evy said, daring to hope. "You remember this? Anything else?"

Ardeth started to shake his head, but caught himself in time. "No, I do not remember the occurrence. I…saw it, as if through someone else's eyes."

 Everyone sighed. 

"Well at least we know his brain still works, if it's trying to bring back his memories."

Alex smiled at Jonathan's choice of words. "Of course his brain works, he's not like _you_, Uncle Jon!"

********************

For the rest of the day everyone took turns staying with Ardeth. He slept through most of it, until it was Safti's turn. Safti told Ardeth more of what the Med-jai do, and what they've done over the years. Eventually Ardeth fell back to sleep, leaving Safti with his thoughts.

_What if he never regains his memory?_ he thought. _Our people will be crushed. Enemies will hear, and try to take advantage of the situation. Does he remember how to fight? Will he be able to adequately defend himself, if attacked? _He sighed, wishing he could bring Ardeth home to Egypt. _Perhaps his memory will return while there,_ he thought. _But no, he is not fit for travel._

He sighed again, wishing he knew what to do. Suddenly he heard a noise, and looked to see that Ardeth was tossing lightly in his sleep.

Safti stood over him, and gently grabbed his arms, not wanting Ardeth to make his own headache worse. "Ardeth, wake up."

It took another try before Ardeth opened his eyes, and he stared unseeing into space.

"Ardeth, what do you see?" Safti asked, assuming he was having another flashback.

Ardeth didn't answer, however, and Safti had to repeat it, louder.

Ardeth's eyes snapped to Safti's face, looking perplexed. His eyes seemed brighter then they should be, and Safti felt his friend's forehead, to find it slightly warm.

"Ardeth?" he said, anxiously, realizing he hadn't answered him the second time either.

_Ardeth and his Med-jai stopped in front of Hut-waret's campsite. Ardeth took out the case with a piece of cloth, and threw it at his enemy.****_

_Hut-waret automatically reached out to catch it, but then remembered the poison and the case flopped around in his hands like a hot potato before Hut-waret let it fall to the sand. He looked up at Ardeth with anger. Anger that the Med-jai was still alive—obviously somehow having received the antidote—and anger that he'd been caught red handed; his behavior at touching the case making it obvious. He'd planned on waving the antidote in the Med-jai's faces, after Ardeth would've been dead. He sighed and picked up the case with a handkerchief and opened it. Inside was a beautiful jewel. He took it out and held it up in the sun, where it sparkled._

_"Very nice," he said._

_Ardeth noticed Safti growing anxious. "Now, uphold your end of the bargain."_

_Hut-waret smiled. "My end?"_

_Safti made a sound heard only by Ardeth, and his horse took a step forward. _

_Ardeth held out his arm towards Safti, as if telling him to remain where he was.  "Hut-waret, you wanted the Stone in exchange for our women. Now you have it."_

_Hut-waret made a motion with his left hand, and a couple men went into a small tent. They came back dragging a woman with them._

_Safti gasped. "__Suhaylah!" he yelled._

_Suhaylah stood there grasping the arm that was around her throat. She felt the knife against her skin, and tried to communicate to her husband through a look. _

_Hut-waret laughed. "I told you I wanted the Euphrates Stone. This is not it. Therefore, the bargain is forfeit, and so are the lives of your women."_**4**__

"Ardeth?"

With a start, Ardeth heard his name being called, and he blinked, to find Safti bending over him, looking worried. There was a commotion and he heard rather then saw Rick and Evy rush in.

"What happened?" Evy shouted.

Safti glanced at her. "He has a fever…he either had a nightmare or another flashback."

At the word 'fever' Evy gasped, and placed her hand on Ardeth's forehead.

"I am all right," he told her.

Safti sighed in relief at hearing his chief's voice. He realized he still had Ardeth by the arms, and he let go.

"Evy?" Rick said, impatient. 

"It's low, Rick."

Rick echoed Safti's relieved sigh.

"Ardeth?" Safti said, and waited for Ardeth to look at him. "Did you have another flashback?"

Ardeth seemed to think, before nodding.

"What was it?"

Ardeth sighed, before he spoke. "I was on a horse…" he frowned, as he tried to recall the significance of the jewel case he'd been holding. 

They all waited patiently, as Evy came into the room with a bowl of water and a towel. No one had even noticed her leave.

"I was holding a black case, and I…threw it at someone."

Rick and Safti instantly knew what he was talking about, but neither of them voiced it, hoping Ardeth would remember himself.

"The man caught it, but dropped it to the sand. He was very angry…" he then looked at Safti. "I told him to uphold his end of the bargain, and he then had a woman brought out…" Ardeth stopped when he saw the look on Safti's face. 

Safti saw the reason for Ardeth's hesitation, and said, "That was my wife, Suhaylah. She and the other Med-jai women were taken, in exchange for the Euphrates Stone."

Ardeth tried to remember what happened after his flashback, but couldn't. "Did we…reclaim them?" he was almost afraid to ask.

Safti smiled, now. "Yes, Ardeth, every one of them."

Ardeth smiled, relieved. 

Everyone was quiet for the next few minutes, the only sound being the water dripping when Evy wrung out the towel she kept wetting and placing on Ardeth's forehead. 

Ardeth knew she meant well, but the water was _very_ cold, and she _had_ said his fever was low. What was the point of making him shiver if the fever was not bad? "Evy, I am all right," he told her.

"Yes, you do seem to be," she agreed, noting with relief that he was coherent and not delirious. "But I don't know why you have a fever and I don't want it to rise any higher."

"Probably because of his little adventures when he wasn't supposed to be out of bed yet," said Rick. 

Safti wondered why the word was plural, not knowing about Ardeth and the secret tunnel incident.

**4** My story, 'The Euphrates Stone' http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=399065


	11. A Setback...and the Possible Answer?

That night Ardeth's fever rose, and he went between more flashbacks and apparent incoherency. He was utterly confused at the images he saw. One minute he was fighting in battle, the next he was riding through an oasis with Rick and getting attacked by a pygmy,**5** the next a very angry-looking black man was holding him by the throat while he was lying on the sand,**6** and then he was on a bus getting slashed up by an undead mummy.**2**

The O'Connells and Safti were very worried as they watched, not knowing what was going through Ardeth's mind. At one point, Ardeth was extremely agitated by whatever it was he was seeing, and Rick had to grab him by the arms and try to calm him down. 

Rick's voice got through to Ardeth for an instant, and he stared up at him. 

_Suddenly he was seeing himself holding a scimitar, and Rick shooting it out of his hand. He watched in amazement as Rick rolled backwards and came up holding a lit stick of dynamite. "We will shed no more blood!" Ardeth heard himself yell. "But you must leave. Leave this place or die!_**1**

When Ardeth realized that Rick was actually his enemy, he tried to struggle out of his grasp. 

"Ardeth! Ardeth, it's Rick. Come on, buddy…" 

_Suddenly Ardeth was seeing Rick looking down at him. "Ardeth? Ardeth, old buddy, say something!"_

_Ardeth heard his friend's voice, as if from a distance. "Rick?" he whispered._

_"Yeah, buddy. Let's get you outta here."_**6**

Ardeth was now more confused then ever. One minute he and Rick were fighting each other, and the next, Rick was saving him!

With a groan, he closed his eyes tight, trying to shut out the contradicting images. 

_"I must go," Ardeth said, and turned to go the opposite way through the jungle._

_"Wait!" Rick said, following after him. "You can't go!"_

_Ardeth stopped, and turn to face him. "I must let the commanders know where we are," he explained. "If the Army of Anubis arises...."_

_Rick put a hand on Ardeth's shoulder. "I need you to help me find my son!"_

_Ardeth looked at him, seeing the fear in Rick's face. He nodded. "Then first I shall help you."_**2__**

Ardeth opened his eyes, and looked at Rick. 

Rick stood from his chair and went over to him. "Ardeth?" he said.

Evy paused in wiping Ardeth's face with cool water, and felt his forehead. "I think his fever is going down!"

Safti, standing behind Evy, nodded. "I agree. His eyes are not as bright."

Safti's voice finally sounded familiar to Ardeth. He tried to speak, but was disorientated by the scenes still playing in his mind. 

They all stared at him as he blinked repeatedly, trying to stay awake. His body won the battle, however, and he fell asleep. 

Rick went back and plopped down into his chair, Safti doing the same.

"I wonder how long this is gonna go on," Rick said. "Before Ardeth gets his memory back."

Safti side. "I wish I knew, my friend."

********************

_"If a man does not embrace his past, he is unprepared for the future."_

_Ardeth knew that Rick was having a hard time believing what he was trying to tell him, insisting it was all coincidence, as they sat loading guns in Izzy's dirigible._**2__**

_Izzy's dirigible! _

Even while asleep, Ardeth's subconscious mind knew that something regarding Izzy's dirigible was important. 

The Ardeth of his dream, still loading guns beside Rick, tried to figure out what was so important. What was it he needed to know?

Izzy's dirigible? What about it? No, it must have nothing to do with the crazy flying boat. What could it possibly be?

"Izzy…"

Rick and Safti stood and went closer to the bed, as Ardeth started to mumble.

"What did he say?" Rick asked Evy.

She looked at him with a frown. "It sounded like he said 'Izzy'."

"Izzy?" Safti echoed. "Who is that?"

"A moron I know," Rick said, with a frown, trying to figure out why Ardeth had said his name. 

"The man who owns the dirigible, and saved our lives at Ahm Shere," she stressed the last part to Rick, irked that he could sound ungrateful towards the guy.

Rick looked at her. "You're right," he said, by way of apologizing. "But why would Ardeth bring Izzy up in a fevered stupor…"

"Izzy," Ardeth said again, eyes still closed. "Get…Izzy."

Everyone frowned, exchanging puzzled glances.

"Rick," said Evy. "You don't think his reason for being here has something to do with Izzy, do you?"

Rick shrugged. "I dunno. Izzy doesn't live in England."

"Perhaps he came here, and Ardeth pursued him," said Safti.

"But what could Izzy do that was so terrible, that Ardeth had to leave right away and follow him?" Evy asked.

"Heh," Rick said. "With Izzy, you'd be surprised."

"Maybe Ardeth will be able to tell us when he wakes up," said Evy. "His subconscious mind is obviously working, if this truly _is_ about Izzy, maybe he'll remember when we mention his name."

"I hope you're right," Rick said. "If Izzy _has_ done something, he's had five days to make it worse."

**1 **'The Mummy'****

**2** 'The Mummy Returns'

**5** My story, 'One Thing After Another' http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=388565

**6** My story, 'Wrath's Return' http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=370331


	12. 'Memories....Stuck in the Corners of My ...

Everyone dozed on and off, staying by Ardeth's bedside. He'd finally calmed, and slept like a log the rest of the night. By daybreak, Ardeth's fever was much lower, now only minimal. He slept through the morning, not waking till noon. 

When Ardeth opened his eyes, he was confused at first, remembering being in a hundred different places, which made no sense to him. 

When his head responded with a throb, he sighed in frustration. _Will it never go away?_

Evy heard his sigh, and leaped out of her chair. "Ardeth! How do you feel?"

He looked at her, and suddenly saw in his mind Evy fighting a red-robed man, who hit her and threw her over his shoulder as he ran out of the room.**2**

"Ardeth?"

"Confused," he answered. "I keep seeing…other things."

Evy smiled, taking it as a good sign. "That's wonderful! Your mind is trying to regain its memory."

"All these things really happened." It was a statement, not a question.

Evy hesitated. "I'm sure at least _some_ of them did, you were in pretty bad shape last night."

Ardeth could remember some of the flashbacks. He replayed them in his mind, trying to see if he could go any further in the memories of the incidents.

"Ardeth?"

He looked at her. "Yes?"

"Last night, you said something, in your fever."

Ardeth blinked, waiting.

Evy took a deep breath, hoping beyond hope that he would remember. "Do you remember Izzy?"

Ardeth frowned.

"He owns a dirigible, we all flew in it, when we were hunting down Lock-nah and Imhotep, who'd kidnapped Alex." She watched Ardeth's face; waiting for the reaction she hoped would come.

"Alex," he said. "Lock-nah…the jungle." He remembered the flashbacks where Rick had asked for his help in finding Alex, and the black man holding him by the throat in the sand, and he realized it was Lock-nah, his mortal enemy. There was no sand in the jungle, however…

"Yes!" Evy cried, ecstatic. "The jungle of Ahm Shere! You remember!" 

Ardeth suddenly saw the dirigible flying off into the sky, containing the O'Connell's. _"Sirma ma-asalam ya ahi,"***** he said, raising his hand to the sky, in farewell. _

"Izzy…" he said. Something tried to make itself known in Ardeth's mind. "That is why…I am here…"

"Ooooooh!" Evy cried, practically clapping her hands with glee. Suddenly she dashed to the door, and screamed for Rick.

The sound of him running up the staircase was comical. He burst into the room, and bellowed, "WHAT!" Seeing Evy standing next to Ardeth, seemingly hanging on his every word, he rushed over.

"Did he remember?" he asked.

Evy nodded her head, smiling from ear to ear.

"Well?" Rick asked Ardeth, who was frowning, apparently in thought.

"I came here because of Izzy," Ardeth said, still frowning.

"I _knew_ it—"

"Shh!" said Evy. "Why, Ardeth? What has he done?"

Ardeth shook his head, and sighed. "I am not sure."

Evy's grin vanished. 

Rick plopped into her chair. "Great! Do you at least know if any mummies are coming after us?"

Ardeth smiled slightly. "I do not think so."

"Thank God," Rick sighed.

Ardeth looked around the room. "Where is Safti?"

"Jonathan took him to send a message to the Med-jai, to let them know what's going on."

Ardeth nodded. "My memory _is_ returning…slowly, it would seem."

Evy grinned again. 

"That's better then not at all!" Rick said, happily. 

********************

Rick and Jonathan spent the afternoon driving through London and checking all the hotels and public places, hoping that they might actually spot Izzy somewhere. They knew that there was only a remote chance, but it was a chance nonetheless. 

"I can't believe that all this trouble can be blamed on that scamp," said Jonathan, still irked that Izzy'd tried to steal the Scepter of Osiris from him.

Rick shook his head, as he drove. "I know. If we actually find him, he's gonna wish we didn't."

By 5pm they gave up, and went back home. 

When they entered the house, they were gsurprised to see Safti and Ardeth in the living room.

"Ardeth," said Rick. "Should you be out of bed?"

"I have grown tired of laying there," Ardeth replied from where he sat, on the couch.

"You did not locate Izzy?" Safti asked.

Rick shook his head. "Lucky for him." He looked around the room. "Where's Evy and Alex?" 

"Evy is cooking," Safti told him. "And I believe your son went to see a friend."

"Okay." Rick and Jonathan sat in chairs near the fire, and no one spoke for a minute.

"Have you remembered yet why you followed after Izzy?" Jonathan asked Ardeth.

Ardeth shook his head. "No. However, I feel that he did not actually do something that the world will suffer for."

Rick's eyebrows went up. "Really? How can you be sure?"

Ardeth shook his head. "I can not. It is just a…feeling."

Jonathan laughed. "Well, Ardeth old boy, we have learned to trust your 'feelings'."

Ardeth smiled, with a nod. "I believe I am remembering more of you and your family, Rick," he said. "As well as some of the incidents that we have been through together."

Rick grinned. "Are you? That's great!"

"You're probably regretting remembering the incidents, I bet!" said Jonathan. 

"Have you remembered the Med-jai, and what you do as Chief?" Rick asked.

Ardeth sighed. "Some. I now remember Safti and others from our tribe. Some things I still do not recall…such as the names of the Elders."

Rick and Jonathan busted out laughing. "Gee, I wonder why," said Rick.

Ardeth and Safti smiled. Rick and Jonathan were at the Med-jai camp enough times to know what it was like dealing with the Elders.

Suddenly they heard footsteps. "Would you two like—Rick! You're back!"

Rick stood, and crossed to Evy. "We didn't find Izzy."

Evy sighed, as she wiped her hands on a towel. "Well, you tried," she said. "There's always tomorrow."

"Is the food done, old mum?" Jonathan asked. "I'm starving!"

Evy laughed. "Of course you're starving, when are you not? Yes, dinner is served."

*****'Sirma ma-asalam ya ahi'; what Ardeth said at the end of TMR. "Peace be upon you, my brother."

**2** 'The Mummy Returns'


	13. 'Izzy, You're Gonna get Shot...'

After dinner Jonathan went into town, using looking for Izzy as an excuse. Everyone else talked in the living room, trying to get more memories out of Ardeth. 

"When we first met, we were enemies," Ardeth said.

Rick nodded. "Hate to say it, but we were. We were trespassing on the Med-jai's property, if you wanna put it that way. You and your warriors attacked the whole expedition, to drive everyone off."**1**

Ardeth nodded. "I remember…you knocked me from my horse and we fought briefly."

Safti gave a short laugh. "Until he lit a stick of dynamite." 

Ardeth nodded. "Yes, until then. But later, we fought together, and succeeded." 

Rick nodded. "We sure did."

"Ardeth, I have been dying to ask you this for years!" Evy said, suddenly realizing they never found out. "How on earth did you get out of the temple, after we defeated Imhotep that first time? Rick told me later that you were surrounded by mummies, he was sure you wouldn't survive." 

They all waited, hoping he remembered.

Ardeth frowned. "I was fighting them off…then there was an explosion; one of your sticks of dynamite, I assumed?" he said, looking at Rick.

Rick nodded, with a lopsided grin.

"The shock of it threw the mummies and I to the side, and the stone wall collapsed…" he paused, trying to bring back the full memory. "I was stunned, but so were the creatures; I at least knew what had happened, while they didn't, and I crawled out from under them and ran before they had a chance to grab me again."

Rick smiled, happy to see that his explosion had in fact saved Ardeth's life. He opened his mouth to speak, but suddenly the front door was thrown open.

"Look what I found!" 

They all looked to see Jonathan dragging Izzy into the house, by his collar.

Everyone—except Ardeth—jumped to their feet.

Rick walked over to Izzy and grabbed him by the shirt, getting right down to business. "Izzy! What did you do that Ardeth had to follow you here?!"

"Huh?" Izzy said, looking past him to see Ardeth, who'd stood by now. "Oh, hi there." Noticing the bandage around his head, he said. "What happened to _you_?"

"_What happened_?" Rick echoed, holding Izzy against the wall. "He almost got _killed_ because of you!"

Evy ran over and grabbed Rick's arm. "Now, now, Rick! If you kill him we won't find out anything!"

Rick glanced at her, and back at Izzy, whose one visible eye was opened wide. Rick shook his head and ripped the eye patch off his face. "You put that stupid thing back on? What, do you _want_ to lose an eye, or something?"

"N-n-now come on, Rick, what is this all about, anyway?" Izzy asked, grabbing his eye patch back and sticking it in his pocket.

"You want me to spell it out for you?" Rick said. "He found out whatever it is that you're up to," he said, pointing at Ardeth.  "And followed you all the way here to stop it!" 

"What Rick's trying to say," said Evy. "Is _why_ did you come to England?" 

"To publish a book!"

"A book?" Evy and Jonathan said in unison. 

"And _what_ is this book about?" Rick asked, menacingly.

"Uhh…" Izzy looked around in fear, as if he was about to bolt. 

Jonathan stood in front of the door, blocking it.

"All right, all right! You got me. I won't publish it."

"_What_ is it about?"

With shaking hands, Izzy pulled a large envelope out of his shirt.

Ardeth walked over. "It tells we went through at Ahm Shere," he said. "Including its location, and that of the Med-jai, as well as the details regarding Imhotep and Anck-su-namun."

Everyone smiled at Ardeth, happy that he'd suddenly remembered. Then their eyes trained back on Izzy, who shrank against the wall.

"You were gonna tell the Med-jai's location?" Rick said, in shock. "And Ahm Shere? Are you insane!"

"Well…I…uhh…"

"Thanks to _you_ with a _book_ I almost lost my best friend?!" Rick said, incredulous, abruptly pulling a gun out of his holster and pointing it at Izzy's face. "Okay, Izzy, you're getting shot."

"I thought _I_ was your best fr—okay! Okay!" Izzy said, hands raised, backing up. "Sorry! I won't sell it, I swear!"

"_I'll_ say you won't," Jonathan said, grabbing the manuscript from Izzy, and handing it to Rick, who was about to rip it to shreds, but instead rolled it up and stuck it in his pocket. 

"What are you doing?" Izzy cried.

"I wanna see just _what_ you wrote, you piece of scarab crap," Rick answered. 

Izzy reached a hand towards the envelope sticking out of Rick's pocket. "You won't like it…"

Rick slapped his hand away. "You try again to publish this thing, and Ardeth will succeed in preventing you next time."

Izzy looked at Ardeth, and, bandaged head or not, shrank from the intense glare Ardeth set on him.

"Okay, uhh…I guess I'll be on my way…" Izzy said, slinking his way towards the door. "Nice seeing you all, again! Oh, hey Rick, uh...can I borrow some money?"

"What?!" Rick roared.

"Well, I spent it before I made it!" Izzy sighed. "I was so sure the book would sell, I uh…kinda celebrated all week…"

"You disgust me." Rick grabbed him by the collar and dragged him to the door. "Goodbye, Izzy!" He opened it, and flung him out.

"And may the fleas of a thousand camels infest your armpits!" Jonathan yelled.

Everyone looked at him like he was insane.

"I always wanted to say that," Jonathan told them, chuckling.

Everyone busted out laughing, as the tension over the no-longer impending crisis slipped away. 

"So that's it?" said Jonathan, incredulous. "No mummies, no treasure, no danger, _nothing_?" He shook his head. "A _book_…Izzy doesn't seem the scholarly type to me."

"He's anything but," said Rick. "The plot was already written. All he had to do was write it down and make money off it."

"I can't believe it," said Evy. "After what we've all been through, after what poor Ardeth has been through…" she shook her head.

Safti looked at Ardeth, to see that he was frowning, staring into space.

"Ardeth?" he said, putting a hand on his arm.

Ardeth's eyebrows furrowed even more, as if he was concentrating on something.

Realizing that Ardeth may be remembering something else, Safti just stood there and watched him, not wanting to interrupt and possibly ruin it. He suddenly noticed that the whole room had grown quiet, and looked around to see everyone silently staring at Ardeth, obviously knowing what was going on.

Eventually Ardeth blinked, and looked around. Seeing everyone's eyes on him, he looked slightly embarrassed. 

"What have you remembered now, Ardeth?" Safti asked. 

"The accident," he said, looking a little pale. 

Safti pulled at his arm, and made him sit on the couch. Everyone followed, and sat wherever there was a seat, anticipating the story.

Ardeth was silent for a minute, before he spoke. "I was sitting in the middle of the bus, on the left side. Suddenly the bus swerved; I do not know what it tried to avoid. It veered to the right, nearly throwing me into the aisle. I did not expect it to then veer violently to the left, and topple. I was thrown into the window of the bus as it tipped." He paused, with a sigh. "The bus finally slammed into the ground, and I remember hearing the glass break." Unconsciously he brought a hand to his head, and rubbed the injury. "Suddenly, people landed on top of me," he gave a half-smile. "And I was buried under them." He frowned, pausing again. "I…think I was stunned for a minute; I remember hearing screams and talking…eventually the passengers got off me, and I came back to myself when some men tried to pick me up off the broken glass. I attempted to stand and they tried to prevent me, but I told them I was all right." He looked up when he heard what sounded like a snort come from Evy. "They helped me up…I remember the concerned looks of the people standing around me as the pain finally hit me and I reached up to feel my head…I looked at my hand and it was covered with blood. Then…" he frowned. "Everything spun…and...then I awoke in the hospital." 

Ardeth looked at everyone, to gauge their reactions. Evy was shaking her head, looking upset. Rick and Safti both looked angry; at Izzy, no doubt, for being the reason Ardeth was on the bus in the first place. Jonathan looked shocked.

"I say, old boy," he said to Ardeth. "You come here to simply grab a manuscript from Izzy, threaten him, and leave…and this is what it turned into! You sure get into a lot of trouble."

Ardeth smiled. "I would not simply have left without saying hello to you all. But as for trouble…it does seem to appear that way. Especially when busses are involved."

Rick laughed, but then stopped; it wasn't really a laughing matter. "That's what I said to Evy the other day!"

Evy stood, and smacked Rick on the arm. "Ardeth, I think you've had enough excitement, we'd better get you back to bed!"

Ardeth looked at Rick with pleading eyes as she took his arm and pulled him off the couch.

Rick could only shrug, with a laugh.

**1 **'The Mummy'


	14. Snowballs and Goodbyes

Ardeth spent the next week recovering. The relief of solving the problem he'd come to England for, and getting his memory back, helped a great deal; he was able to relax, instead of being full of stress. 

He was currently sitting in front of the fire as Evy made breakfast, and he looked up when he heard a laugh that sounded strangely like Safti. Standing, he went to the window, just in time to see Alex throw a snowball at his friend, who was crouching, rolling snow between his own hands.

Ardeth's eyebrows shot up, at the look of glee on Safti's face, as he threw it at Alex. Looking to make sure Evy didn't see him, he bundled up and went outside.

_*boof*_

Safti frowned in surprise, when he was hit with a snowball on the back of his head. Rick, Alex, and Jonathan were all in his line of sight, who had thrown it? 

He turned, and had to duck quickly when another one came straight for him.

Ardeth stood there, laughing.

Safti picked up some snow, and rolled it up good. Just as he was about to throw it, they heard;

"NO!"

Evy came running over, wearing no jacket and holding a kitchen towel as she stood in front of Ardeth, her arms spread out as if she thought she could protect him.

"Safti!" she yelled. "What if you hit him in the head, or he falls?"

"You are right," Safti said, and started to lower the snowball. When he saw Evy drop her hands, he threw it at her.

"Eeeeeeek!" she shrieked, as the wet snow smacked into her shirt.

Everyone started laughing, as Evy ran back into the house. 

Taking advantage of the situation, Ardeth threw another snowball at Safti. _If our tribe could see us now!_ he thought. 

Safti grabbed a handful of loose snow, and flung it at Ardeth, knowing that it couldn't hurt him. 

The spray got Ardeth in the face, and he did the same thing back to Safti.

Rick, Jonathan, and Alex stood there, watching, shocked to see the Med-jai warriors—Leader and Second of their tribe, even—throwing snow like little kids.

"Poor guys," Jonathan said. "Living the hard lives that they do. No wonder they're enjoying the snow! They are human, after all! It's fitting that they get a vacation."

Rick nodded. "Yeah."

Suddenly Ardeth slipped, but Safti was close enough to grab his arm and keep him upright. 

With a gasp, Rick, Jonathan, and Alex ran over, Rick grabbing Ardeth's other arm.

"You all right?" he asked.

Ardeth nodded, relieved. "Yes."

Suddenly the door opened again, and Evy poked only her head out, as if to make sure no more snowballs were flying her way. She was wearing a different shirt. "Breakfast!" she yelled, and closed the door quickly, so they wouldn't have the chance to throw anymore.

Everyone laughed at her paranoia, as they went back into the house. 

********************

Finally the day came where they felt that Ardeth was healthy enough to travel back to Egypt. 

As they stood at the dock, they were all reluctant to say goodbye.

"Thank you, my friends," Ardeth said, sincerely. "For your care of me. You are greatly appreciated."

Evy threw her arms around him, squeezing him tight. "Anytime, Ardeth. You know we love you."

Ardeth smiled, at her sweet words. 

Suddenly the boat's whistle blew, indicating that the passengers should board. 

Rick surprised Ardeth by giving him a quick hug. "Take care of yourself," Rick told him, still upset over the fact that he could've been killed.

Ardeth smiled. "I will, sadiqi."

"Try to stay away from buses from now on, old boy," Jonathan said, shaking Ardeth's hand.

Ardeth laughed. "I do not think I shall _ever_ ride another."

"Ardeth?"

Ardeth looked down at Alex, who was clutching something behind his back. "I want you to take this with you."

He held out the teddy bear.

Ardeth was speechless.

Evy and Rick looked at each other, in surprise.

"Alex, I could not take away your prized possession…" Ardeth started to say.

Alex shook his head. "I want you to! It made you feel better, like it always made me. Now whenever you get scared, it'll be there," he shrugged. "I have other ones."

Ardeth tried to swallow the sudden lump in his throat. 

When the Med-jai still made no move to take it, Alex took his hand and put the teddy bear in it.

Ardeth looked at it, and back at Alex. "Are you sure?"

Alex nodded vigorously, and took a step back as if to make sure Ardeth couldn't force him to take it back.

Ardeth looked at Rick and Evy to see them grinning ear to ear. He then looked at Safti to see him smiling also, trying not to laugh. _Wonderful,_ Ardeth thought. _Safti found out, and will probably spread it around the whole tribe. _

Alex was still smiling, obviously glad that he'd accepted the teddy bear. Ardeth bent down and gave the child a hug.

Alex didn't want to let go. He loved Ardeth, and wished he didn't have to leave. 

"Thank you," Ardeth said to him.

Alex smiled bigger, if possible. "You're welcome!"

Everyone quickly made their goodbyes to Safti, and watched as they boarded the boat. 

"Hey Ardeth!" Rick yelled.

Ardeth and Safti looked down from the lower deck.

"I think next time we'll come visit _you_. You get into too much trouble in England."

Ardeth smiled, with a nod. 

The boat started to pull away, and both parties waved, as a final farewell. 

Ardeth and Safti watched as Rick, Evy, Jonathan, and Alex became small dots, and then vanished altogether as the boat journeyed on, back to their homeland, and to their people. 

"It will be good to be home again," said Safti. Then he sighed. "But I will miss the snowball fights."

Ardeth laughed. "As will I."

Safti nodded, and looked at Ardeth with a smile. "I am glad to have you back, Ardeth."

Ardeth smiled back. "I am glad to _be_ back, sadiqi." He looked at the teddy bear he was still holding. "Safti…"

Safti slapped a hand on Ardeth's shoulder. "Do not worry, Ardeth. I will not tell anyone."

Ardeth gave him a look as if to say, 'you better not'.

THE END

Okay, lol here's a rundown of all the footnotes:

**1 **'The Mummy'

**2 **'The Mummy Returns'****

**3** My story, 'Wise One' http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=426671

**4** My story, 'The Euphrates Stone' http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=399065

**5** My story, 'One Thing After Another' http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=388565

**6** My story, 'Wrath's Return' http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=370331

*****'Sirma ma-asalam ya ahi'; what Ardeth said at the end of TMR. "Peace be upon you, my brother." 

'Shukran' Arabic for 'Thank you'

'Afwan' Arabic for 'You're welcome'

'Sadiqi' Arabic for 'My friend'


End file.
